


family we find

by pikedexter



Category: 9-1-1 (TV)
Genre: 4x04, Athena Grant and Bobby Nash are Evan "Buck" Buckley's Parents, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Post-Episode: s04e04 9-1-1 What's Your Grievance?, not beta'd this is pure self indulgence idc oop
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-13
Updated: 2021-02-13
Packaged: 2021-03-13 00:02:05
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,017
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29393097
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/pikedexter/pseuds/pikedexter
Summary: Buck goes to Bobby and Athena after Maddie spills the family secret.Aka: i cant hug buck so i'll make them
Relationships: Evan "Buck" Buckley & Athena Grant, Evan "Buck" Buckley & Bobby Nash
Comments: 10
Kudos: 197
Collections: 9-1-1 Tales





	family we find

**Author's Note:**

> i did this for me so if it's not great enh its just a lot of hugging and crying

Buck finds himself outside Bobby and Athena’s after leaving Maddie’s. He doesn't really remember driving there which probably isn’t great but he’s in one piece.

“I have a brother,” are the first words out of his mouth when Bobby answers the door. “Had?” He continues before Bobby can even respond.

“What are you talking about?” Bobby asks gently as he ushers Buck inside and to the couch, sitting down next to him. Buck is practically hyperventilating when Athena comes in from the kitchen..

“Buck, sweetie, what’s wrong?” She asks, crouching down to meet his eyes.

“They’ve been lying to me my entire life.” He says quietly. “I had a brother and none of them ever thought to tell me. Why didn’t they tell me?” he asks, looking between his surrogate parents with tears in his eyes.

“Oh, Honey,” Athena says, pulling him into her arms. Bobby rests a hand on his back. It’s then the floodgates open. The tears come so hard he can’t catch his breath.

They sit curled together until he calms down,whispering love and reassurances into his hair.

“It wasn’t enough to constantly remind me I'm a disappointment, they had to hide a sibling from me too.” Buck says after a while, barely audible. They pull away to look at him horrified.

“Buck, you're not a disappointment,” Bobby tells him sternly, a hand resting on the side of his face, forcing him to look at him. “I am so proud to have you on my team, as a part of my family.” Athena nods.

“I am too, Buckaroo. You’re a good man. You deserve better than your parents treated you.” She tells him fervently.

“I wish I had had you two instead.” Buck admits and they pull him close again.

“You have us now,” Athena tells him.

“She’s right, Buck. You’re as much a part of this family as May and Harry.” That starts the tears back up as he clutches onto them both.

“Thank you.”

“Oh, Buck you don’t have to thank people for loving you, that’s what family does.” That sets him off more and Bobby and Athena share a sad look over his head.

It’s later, once Buck has calmed down. that they get the full story. That Maddie had finally shared the family secret with him, that he had a brother who had died.

Athena makes tea and they sit at the table as Bobby makes dinner.

“His name was Daniel. He died when I was a baby. My parents decided it would be a fantastic idea to hide him from me and made Maddie promise to go along with it when she was  _ nine.  _ Who does that?” 

“I'm so sorry, Buck.” Athena says, placing a hand over his and squeezing. “Do you know what happened?” Buck looks down into his mug before answering.

“He was sick. Um, apparently I was a savior baby? Or supposed to be. Clearly that didn’t work out. Guess I know now why my parents never liked me.”

“That’s an awful reason to have a baby and too much to put on a kid.” Bobby cuts in from the kitchen.

“Maddie has this whole box of things from when she was a baby and I have nothing, they cared that little about my existence outside of him.” Tears start to prickle at the corners of his eyes and Athena gets up to pull him into another hug.

“Stay for the night.” Athena tells him

“I don’t want to impose.”

“You’re not imposing, Buck.” Bobby backs Athena up from the kitchen. “You’re always welcome here.”

“I- ok. Thank you, guys. For everything.” Buck says quietly. 

“That’s what family’s for, kid.” Bobby says as he walks away from dinner for just a moment to join the hug on Buck’s other side.

“What’s wrong?” May asks, concerned, coming down the stairs, having just gotten home.

“I have a secret dead brother,” Buck tells her.

“Oh my God.”

“Yeah,” Buck huffs a humorless laugh. Bobby squeezes his shoulder before going back to cooking.

“Are you ok?” She asks, sitting opposite the seat Athena vacated.

“Not really,” he tells her with a sad smile. “You’re lucky to have the parents you do.” He adds.

“I know. And hey, Mom and Bobby have practically adopted you.” She says, reaching out to put a hand on his arm.

Dinner is a quiet affair, though not for lack of trying. But Buck is all talked out and no one pushes him. It’s a mostly comfortable silence though, all things given.

They watch a movie after, though no one really pays attention. Bobby and Athena sit close on either side of Buck with May at his feet, leaning against his legs, surrounding him with comfort and love.

They make up the couch for him and when he wakes Bobby is the only one up, starting on breakfast.

“Hey, kid. You feeling any better today?” Bobby asks when he drags himself into the kitchen in search of coffee. The older man wordlessly pours a cup and holds it out. He takes it gratefully.

“A bit.” He says with a tight smile. “You all definitely helped.” 

“I'm glad,” Bobby says, pulling him into yet another hug. It probably should feel like too much at this point but Buck is soaking up all the comfort he can get. “Want to help me with breakfast?” He asks after pulling away.

Buck nods and they get to work. It’s good, helping Bobby in the kitchen. He’d never done it with either of his parents. He enjoys the closeness it creates.

Athena comes in after a while, giving Bobby a kiss and pulling Buck down to kiss his temple before getting her coffee and going to sit at the table.

“How are you feeling, Buckaroo?”

“Better.” He tells with a small smile which she returns.

“Good.” She says.

His parents might be shit but he had Bobby and Athena now and that made all the difference. They were quick to love in a way the Buckleys never were. He felt thankful they had found their way into his life.


End file.
